Deception A2 COMPLETE
by FullMoonDreams
Summary: When the body asking Tru for help is Harrison's cheating girlfriend Cassie, she has to decide whether her brother's happiness or her calling comes first. COMPLETE
1. Cheating

_Disclaimer – I do not have the copyright for the characters etc. Just borrowing them for a while._ _Cassie is a made up character for the story which is set after the conclusion of season one of the show._

_It was also written BEFORE the episodes of season two were aired so there may well be inconsistencies between this story and the actual season two._

_I love hearing from people who read any of my stories so be sure to leave a review if you do read this. Constructive criticism is welcome and I would like to hear from people as to what they think is wrong with the story too, especially since most people are not actually reading past the first part. _

_I have set up a Tru Calling C2 if you want to check it out in my user profile. If you like Harrison focused fics I hope you will consider subscribing._

_Thanks and enjoy! _

**The Deception**

_**Chapter 1 – Cheating **_

Tru Davies frowned as she looked across the subtly lit restaurant. She couldn't be sure from this distance. If the woman would just move to the side a bit she would be able to see if it was her or not.

"Tru, are you even listening to me?" Meredith asked from across the table.

"Sure," Tru replied distractedly.

"Do you see someone you know?" Meredith asked curiously as sheturned around in her seat to see what it was that hadattracted her younger sister's attention.

"I'm not sure," Tru said as she leaned back in her seat in an attempt to see better.

"Where are we looking?" Meredith asked.

"It is her!" Tru exclaimed. "The cheating little..."

"Who?" Meredith asked as Tru jumped up from her seat and made her way through the tables across to the other side of the room. Meredith stood up with a sigh and follwed after her.

She caught up with her just as she arrived at a table near the window. The couple at the table were clearly on a date. The woman was dark-haired and her face was pale. At the sight of a furious Tru Davies she paled even more.

"This isn't what you think..." she began.

"So this isn't a date?" Tru asked in a voice laced with sarcasm. "You're not cheating on Harrison?"

"Er," the woman hesitated as she shot a glance at the smartly dressed man across the table.

If the man was intending to come to the rescue of his date his next words were a poor choice. "Who the hell is Harrison?"

"My brother," Tru said, her tone deceptively sweet and her eyes ice cold. "Her boyfriend."

"You said you were single," the man accused, rising from his seat and balling the napkin in his fist. Throwing it down on the table, he stalked from the restaurant.

"So it's not just my brother you've been lying to," said Tru as she casually reached over for the untouched bowl of soup. She tipped it casually over the cheating woman's lap. She gasped and jumped up from her seat as the hot soup soaked through her dress.

"Now just a minute..." she hissed as she tried to stop the flood of vegetable soup from causing any more damage.

"What's going on here?" The waiter looked nervous. He had just started his shift and didn't want to get in the middle of a cat fight.

"Nothing, we're just leaving," said Tru as she turned towards the door. She walked away, stopping a few feet from the table. "I suggest you go talk with Harrison tonight, because I'll be seeing him tomorrow, and I won't stand for you messing him about any longer."

With that Tru walked out of the restaurant with a confused looking Meredith trailing behind her.


	2. The Bearer of Bad News

_**Chapter 2 – The Bearer of Bad News**_

"Harrison," Tru shouted as she banged on the door shortly before eleven o'clock the following morning. The sound of movement came from inside the flat and she knocked on the door again for good measure.

"Do you _know_ what time it is?" Harrison complained as he opened the door to let his sister in.

"Nearly eleven," answered Tru as she walked into the flat and looked around. The room was typical of her younger brother. Clothes were tossed on the furniture instead of being hung up. There were dirty plates on the table and what looked like a cup of cold coffee on the kitchen counter.

"Eleven?" Harrison looked quickly at the clock before sinking onto the couch.

"What's up?" Tru asked as she picked up an empty pizza box from one of the chairs, deposited it into a waste bin and sat down.

"I've overlaid," Harrison groaned as he rested his head back. "I had an interview for a job this morning at ten."

"A job?" Tru asked, trying not to sound too sceptical. Her brother's track record with jobs was not exactly good.

"A friend of a friend set up an interview for me at a bookies," Harrison explained.

"Well you have plenty of experience of being in them," Tru joked. "Can't you call and say you're running late?"

Harrison shook his head. "Doesn't matter. There'll be other jobs."

"You could try..." Tru knew she was wasting her breath but if it meant she could stall a little longer then she would chat about jobs all morning. Unfortunately Harrison knew her too well.

"So what did you really come round for?" he asked, no trace of the disappointment of missing out on the job evident in his face.

"Don't you ever tidy up around here?" Tru asked, stalling for time again as she cast an aimless wave of her arm around the room.

"Nah." Harrison grinned. "Sooner or later you start cleaning when you're round here." He nodded at the pizza box in the waste bin to demonstrate his point.

"How does Cassie put up with this mess?" Tru asked, in a tone she hoped was suitably casual. "For an interior designer like her, this room must be a nightmare."

"She doesn't mind," Harrison shrugged. "She isn't dating me for my flat," he added with a grin.

"So you're still dating?" Tru asked. She had realised rather belatedly the previous evening that she had not actually asked Cassie if she and Harrison had broken up or not.

"Yeah," Harrison replied with a slight frown. "You know we are. You saw us together just last week."

Tru nodded in agreement. The sense of relief at not having poured hot soup over the woman without good reason was small compared to the nerves she felt at having to tell Harrison about his girlfriend cheating on him.

"So did you see Cassie last night?" Tru asked, hoping for a moment that perhaps Cassie had indeed spoken with her brother before she had arrived and that it would not be necessary for her to break the news.

"No," Harrison answered. "What's wrong? I thought you and Cassie got on great."

"We did," Tru said as she stood up and began to pace the small room.

"_Did_? What's wrong?" he asked again.

"I..." Tru hesitated. "I don't know how to tell you this...but...well...last night I was at that new French restaurant across town..."

"And?" Harrison asked, frowning in confusion.

"And Cassie was there too," Tru finally managed to blurt out the words.

"You two went out for a meal and didn't invite me?" Harrison asked with a fake hurt expression on his face.

"No" Tru shook her head. "Cassie wasn't with me. I was with Meredith. Cassie was...um...she was...with another man."

Tru sank back down onto the chair and after a moment of silence had passed she finally plucked up the courage to look at her brother and see his reaction. 

"She was on a _date_?" Harrison asked in surprise.

"Yes," Tru nodded. "She's cheating on you."

"Are you sure?" Harrison asked.

"Positive," Tru nodded again. "I'm so sorry Harry. I know you really liked her. I'm so sorry to have to tell you."

Harrison nodded in silence. Tru had never seen him so quiet. Standing up and moving across the room she sat down beside her brother and hugged him to her. She couldn't tell if he was crying or not.

"What are you going to do?" she finally asked when she could bear the silence no longer.

"I'll go talk to her," Harrison whispered. "Maybe we can still sort things out."

"You're sure about that?" Tru hesitated to cause her brother more pain but she had never been the type of person who believed in putting off the inevitable. It was far better to get things over with right away than leave them to get worse.

"I'm sure," Harrison said in a firmer voice. "We _have_ to work things out."

"You think you can get through this?" Tru asked.

"I love her," Harrison answered simply before standing up and turning away. He had just reached the doorway to the bedroom when a thought came to him and he turned back to Tru. "Does Cassie know you saw her there?" he asked.

"Um...yes," Tru answered in a small voice.

"What did you do?" Harrison asked with a sigh.

"Let's just say that she never had a chance to taste the soup."


	3. Rewind

_**Chapter 3 – Rewind**_

"Hey Harrison." Tru answered her mobile as she hurried down the busy street. "How did it go?"

"Not good."

Even over the noise of the traffic Tru could tell that her brother sounded far more down than he had that morning when she had left him to go and speak with Cassie.

"So what happened?" she asked, unable to bear the suspense.

"Well she didn't deny she was on a date," Harrison told her. "She said that our relationship wasn't going anywhere and that we should break up."

"Nice of her to break up with you _after_ being caught cheating," Tru couldn't resist blurting.

"Well it's over now," Harrison sighed audibly. "Do you want to get something to eat when you get off work later?"

"Sure," Tru answered.

"You don't have plans already?" Harrison asked.

"Nothing that can't be changed for my favourite brother. I'll grab some takeout and come over as soon as I'm done at work, okay?"

"Okay," Harrison agreed. "See you later."

He rang off and Tru hurried on down the street to run some errands before heading in to work.

Two hours later she arrived at the morgue and saw immediately that there was a new arrival waiting for her.

"Who do we have?" Tru asked Davis as she hurried into the office to hang up her coat and ready herself for work.

"Female, Caucasian, early twenties, brought in from the river, apparent drowning." Davis rattled off the impersonal details as he opened the purse he had found in the woman's jacket. "Cassie Mitchell, a waitress over at Den's Diner."

"Cassie Mitchell?" Tru turned around in the doorway.

"That's right." Davis looked up. "Do you know her?" he asked.

"I'm not sure," Tru answered as she came back into the room. "I know a Cassie Mitchell but she's an interior designer, not a waitress."

Tru walked across to where Davis stood waiting for her. He stepped aside in order that Tru could see the woman lying before them. "It's her," Tru confirmed.

"You go and sit down," Davis advised. "I'll get someone else to come in and assist this time." He headed into the office assuming that Tru was following behind him.

Instead Tru remained where she was for a moment. Not long, but just long enough for Cassie Mitchell to turn her bruised face towards Tru and speak the now familiar words.

"Help me."

Suddenly the world began to spin and Tru felt the initial shock slip away as time re-set itself and she woke up to the sound of her alarm clock ringing out that it was nine o'clock that morning once more.

Sitting up in bed with a gasp Tru reached for the alarm clock and shut off the intrusive ringing.

So many questions ran through her mind that for a moment she couldn't even bring herself to get out of bed.

What had happened to Cassie since speaking with Harrison that afternoon?

If she had drowned, where had the bruises on her face come from?

And the most disturbing question of all. One she couldn't bear to think about for more than a second or two; had her own actions that day in speaking with Harrison somehow caused the death of the young woman?

A fleeting thought crossed her mind that maybe she should leave Harrison's cheating girlfriend to her own fate. But as fleeting as it was it was also disturbing. Realising with a shiver that it sounded like something Jack would have said, Tru reached for the phone determined that something would go right for her brother this time around.

"Harrison?" Tru asked when a groggy sounding voice mumbled into the phone at the other end. "You need to be getting up and going for your job interview," she reminded her younger brother.

"Job?" he answered vacantly before suddenly repeating the word loudly as realisation struck. A crash from the other end made Tru shake her head in wonder. It sounded like he'd dropped the phone.

"Thanks Tru," Harrison called into the phone. It sounded like he was moving about the room and not holding the phone. "Hey wait a minute." His voice came through clearer this time and he had obviously picked up the phone again. "This is one of _those_ days isn't it? I never told you about the interview. How did it go? Did I get it? What questions was I asked? Come on Tru...spill."

"Don't know Harry," Tru answered. "Yesterday you overslept and missed it completely."

"Oh." Harrison sounded disappointed at not having the advance warning of what he was going to be asked.

"Sorry," Tru said. "Good luck though."

"Thanks Tru," Harrison answered before ringing off.

"Right," Tru told herself as she got dressed. "Now to find out what an interior designer is doing working as a waitress."

She wondered if she should call Harrison again and try to get more information out of him. But she didn't want to cause him the same pain she had the previous day all over again. Considering how upset he had sounded over the break up she didn't want to think of his reaction to finding out that it was his girlfriend who was going to die today. She hoped that she could sort things out without letting Harrison know.

Then if she managed to save Cassie, they could sort out his love life. If she couldn't save her then he need never know about her two-timing him.


	4. The Waitress

_**Chapter 4 – The Waitress**_

Den's Diner was situated on the corner of a busy intersection and was crowded with customers when Tru arrived. She ordered breakfast and sat down in a recently vacated booth at the far side of the room, directly opposite the door. From her position she had a clear view of most of the diner with the advantage of being hidden from view if she moved just a little to her right. Sipping her coffee, she looked discreetly round the room but could not see Cassie anywhere about. 

"You're late!" a loud male voice barked out. Tru looked towards the door and quickly scooted across her seat and out of sight when she saw Cassie rushing in the door with a dry cleaning bag that she quickly pushed out of sight in the back room. She returned to the counter a minute later, having donned her uniform and grabbed a pad and pencil.

She wondered how Cassie would feel if she suddenly approached the counter. After the previous evening she wondered whether it was a good idea to come here and risk having food thrown back at her. But realistically there was no other lead she could take without asking Harrison where Cassie lived or worked and he thought she was an interior designer. No, she reasoned, there was no option other than to come to the diner this morning.

Finishing her coffee quickly she made a move to stand up when a familiar voice rang out from the entrance. Sitting back again Tru watched as Harrison walked across to the counter and took a seat across from where Cassie was standing.

Unsure what to do, Tru sat back and decided to observe for a moment before making her presence known.

"The usual?" Cassie asked brightly. Tru frowned from her seat. So Harrison had been here often enough to be a regular customer. And Cassie was happy to see him, and didn't appear even remotely worried that he might have found out about her date the previous evening. She continued to watch them as she tried to figure out what it was that was wrong, besides the obvious. It was something she couldn't quite put her finger on. Something that was, off. She just couldn't figure out what.

Cassie served Harrison and poured him a coffee before placing a piece of paper in front of him.

"You expect me, your boyfriend, to pay for breakfast?" Harrison asked with a grin.

"That's not for your meal," Cassie replied. "That's what you owe me for dry cleaning."

"What?" Harrison asked with a bewildered look on his face. Tru suspected her own expression was of a similar nature.

"My dry cleaning bill," Cassie repeated patiently. "For my black dress. The one I was wearing last night when your sister Tru decided to throw a bowl of soup over me."

"Tru did what?" Harrison laughed.

"Threw a bowl of vegetable soup over me," said Cassie as she leaned forward over the counter. "In defence of your honour, hence it is now your bill."

"I'm confused," Harrison said as he shook his head as though to clear it.

Tru listened in amazement as Cassie provided Harrison with the full details of the events of the previous evening. There was not a hint of remorse in her words. If anything she sounded amused by the whole business, although rather annoyed about the soup. Tru drew in a sharp breath and waited for Harrison's reaction. Even so she was not ready for his joyful laughter resounding through the diner.

"If I get this job, I'll pay for the dry cleaning," Harrison offered once he had finally finished laughing. "Deal?"

"And if you don't get the job?" Cassie asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Then I'll buy you lunch." Harrison grinned. "I think I can stretch my budget to cover a bowl of vegetable soup."

"Okay," Cassie agreed with a matching grin. "On one condition. You tell Tru the truth...today."

Harrison stood up and nodded. "I'll sort it," he agreed.

"Really, Harrison," Cassie insisted.

"Okay, okay. Now are you going to wish me luck?" he asked as he headed for the door.

"Good luck," Cassie called with a shake of her head and a small smile.

It was only then that Tru finally realised what it was that had seemed strange about the two of them this morning. Whenever they had been together before they had been the most clingy couple she had ever known. This morning Harrison had not given his girlfriend so much as a peck on the cheek.

She was about to follow after Harrison when she realised that Cassie was heading in her direction. Sitting back she watched her pass by with a coffee and donut and take a seat in the adjacent booth with another of the waitresses.

Tru realised that she was trapped and couldn't leave without Cassie seeing her and realising that she had been blatantly spying on her and her brother.


	5. Cassie's Secret

_**Chapter 5 – Cassie's Secret **_

"I can't believe you just said that." The unfamiliar voice drifted across from the other booth.

"He needs to tell her what's going on," said Cassie.

"I know," the other voice said. "But considering the fact I've been badgering you to tell him your little secret for the last month, I think it's rather unfair of you to pester him about something like telling the truth."

"Don't start Beth," Cassie grumbled. "You aren't allowed to bully me before my daily caffeine intake."

"But why don't you tell him?" Beth asked curiously.

"Because there's no point," answered Cassie.

"So you admit you like him?" Beth crowed.

"So what if I do?" Cassie sighed. "There's no point telling him. I'm not his type."

"You don't know that," Beth pointed out. "You get along great and he's always coming by to see you."

"Actually I do know that," Cassie sighed, ignoring the other comments. She knew why he came round the diner. "Just leave it."

"So what is his type then?" Beth pressed on regardless of the dangerous tone in her friend's voice. Tru shifted in her seat a little. She felt awful to be eavesdropping but it was impossible to leave without being seen. Besides which she was now very curious as to what was going on. Harrison had been dating Cassie for a little over two months now, but the conversation in the other booth was more indicative of someone who liked someone else but was unwilling to let them know. What was going on?

"Well?" Beth asked again.

"Pretty little blondes if you must know," Cassie finally replied.

"You think he's still hung up on his ex, er...L...Lesley?" Beth asked.

"Lindsay," Cassie confirmed, "and no, he's over her now."

"So you think because his ex is a 'pretty little blonde' he won't be interested in dating you?" Beth snorted and waited in silence for Cassie to respond.

"It's not just that his ex fits that profile," Cassie explained. "When I'm out with him in public just lately his eyes tend to wander wherever the blondes are." She gave a bitter sounding laugh. "That's how I know he's over Lindsay. At first he was still so cut up over her he never looked at any other women. Now he is ready to start dating again and he's made it clear what his type is. The only thing stopping him properly dating is me and our little web of lies."

"So that's why you're pushing him to tell Tru what's really going on?" Beth asked.

"It's the only way he can bring this to an end."

"You do realise that if he does tell her the truth, and if you're right about him not being interested, that he won't have a reason to stop by here any more. That you won't see him again."

"He's not interested," Cassie replied. "If he was he'd have..."

"What?" Beth asked.

"Well he'd...it's not like he's ever..." Cassie faltered.

"Yes...?" Beth pressed on.

"He only plays at being interested when it's for the benefit of someone else. When we're alone he never..."

"Makes a move?" Beth guessed.

"Not once," Cassie confirmed, breathing a sigh of relief that she didn't have to say it out loud herself. "And it's not like he hasn't had the opportunity."

"Okay..." Beth hesitated. "But hasn't it occurred to you that perhaps he doesn't think you're interested and he was just being a gentleman."

Cassie snorted. "You have to be the only person who has ever met Harrison that would describe him as a gentleman."

"But if you don't tell him you like him, then how...?" Beth sighed. "We seem to be going round in circles, don't we?"

"Come on girls," the manager called from behind the counter. "Back to work."

Cassie and Beth stood up and picked up their empty cups and plates.

"Just one more question," said Beth as they moved away. "How in the world did my innocent suggestion become this whole mess?"

Tru watched Cassie shake head and roll her eyes as they moved towards the kitchen. Beth's question was a valid one. Tru wondered the same herself but after the previous evening she couldn't ask Cassie. There was only one other person who could tell her what was going on and getting up from the booth she hurried out the door to track down her younger brother. There was plenty of time to find Cassie again later before she wound up in the morgue.


	6. Harrison Confesses

_**Chapter 6 – Harrison Confesses**_

"So how did the job interview go?" asked Tru when she finally caught up with Harrison at the park later that morning. _This was not good_ she thought to herself_, she was stalling again._

"Not bad," he answered.

"So how are things with you and Cassie?" Tru asked, determined to stop stalling and to get this over and done with.

"Great, couldn't be better," Harrison replied with a wide grin.

"So no problems between you two then?" Tru subtly questioned.

"Nah, we're good," he answered.

Okay, thought Tru with a frown, subtle wasn't going to do it. Time to just come out with it and ask.

"So when were you going to tell me you aren't really dating?" _There_, she thought, _straight to the point_.

"Huh?" Harrison stopped walking and turned to Tru, his mouth hanging open. "Aren't you going to tell me about her two-timing me?" he blurted when he finally found his voice.

"I did that yesterday," Tru answered with a roll of her eyes. "You were heartbroken, or at least you played the part to perfection. I should've known at the time you were faking but I guess either I'm slipping or you're getting better at lying."

"Oh," Harrison said, at a loss for words for the moment. "I guess you're a bit upset?" he tentatively asked.

"A bit?" Tru exclaimed. "I threw a bowl of soup over her!"

"Yeah, so I heard," Harrison laughed. "She's not mad at you, you know."

"I know," Tru sighed. "But really. What possessed you to pretend to date someone?"  
  
"Does it matter?" Harrison mumbled.

"Yes, it does," Tru countered. "I want to know why you felt you had to lie to me. Why you thought you had to invent a girlfriend."

Harrison remained silent. Tru waited a moment before pressing on. "Come on Harry, you know you can tell me anything. What made you do this?"

Harrison walked over to the bench at the side of the path and sank down onto it. Tru sat down beside him and gave him a quick one armed hug. He drew in a deep breath and launched into the explanation of how he had wound up with a fake girlfriend.

"You remember the party you held when Lindsay and her husband came back for the visit?"

"Sure," answered Tru. "That was the first time you introduced us to Cassie."

"It was also our first 'date'." Harrison paused and waited for the inevitable.

"But you said you had been dating for a few weeks?" Tru questioned.

Harrison shrugged in response. "I wanted Lindsay to think I was over her. I wanted to show her she was replaceable. I don't know..." he faltered. "I wanted her to be jealous."

"So you decided to ask Cassie to the party and made everything else up for Lindsay's benefit?" Things were starting to become clearer.

"Actually it wasn't my idea," Harrison insisted. "Beth at the diner was the one who came up with the plan."

"Cassie's friend." Tru nodded.

"You know her?" Harrison asked in surprise.

"Not exactly," Tru waved a hand. "Carry on."

"Well, I'd told Beth what the problem was and she suggested getting a date for the party. When I told her I didn't want to get tied up in another relationship just yet, that's when she suggested taking Cassie. She was new in town, just finished design school out of the State and didn't know anyone round here. Said she'd just got out of another relationship herself and we could go as friends."

"If that's the case why did you lie to us?" Tru asked, getting more and more exasperated by the minute.

"Because of what you said before the party. About being worried about me." Harrison looked across at Tru and waited for her reaction.

"I never told you I was worried about you," said Tru. "I told Lindsay when we were getting things ready, and...you heard?"

Harrison nodded. "I'm your brother, I'm supposed to look out for you. Instead you're worrying about me and I didn't want to be an additional problem for you. You've got enough of your own to deal with. It was just that hearing you talk like that I realised that if I had a new girlfriend then you wouldn't be worrying about me so much. So I talked Cassie into pretending to be a real date for the night. Then you invited us to that function at the hospital, and then there was Meredith's birthday party, and after that things kind of got out of hand." He finished in a rush and stood up and started to pace a little.

"Oh Harry," Tru sighed. "How is it that I can catch you in a complete web of lies and you can still make me feel like it is all my fault?" She gave a small laugh.

"I didn't mean it to go this far." Harrison sounded as sincere as Tru had ever known him to be.

"Well at least now I know and next time I see Cassie on a date I'll know not to thrown things over her." Tru laughed and stood up. Hooking her arm through Harrison's they carried on walking along the path.

"She'll be pleased about that," Harrison laughed. "She has been pestering me to tell you the truth for weeks. I bet that yesterday... when I spoke to her after you told me about her date...I'll bet that she just told me to use it as an excuse to bring things to an end."

"I think perhaps she might have," Tru agreed, remembering her conversation over the phone with Harrison. She remembered him sounding far more down after speaking with Cassie. It made her wonder if perhaps Cassie was wrong, and that Harrison might be stopping by the diner again after all.

"Tru?" Harrison asked in a very casual sounding voice. Tru frowned for an instant; _did he sound just a shade too casual?_ "Did Cassie look happy last night?"

"I'd just thrown a bowl of soup over her," Tru reminded him. "She was hardly ecstatic."

"I meant before then?" Harrison asked. "On her date?"

_Interesting_, Tru thought. "She looked happy enough," she answered cautiously.

"What was he like?" Harrison questioned, again in the same overly casual tone.

Tru turned away to hide her smile before replying. "He looked quite pleasant, a businessman from the look of him. Not very happy after I'd interfered though."

"You don't think she'll be seeing him again then?" asked Harrison hopefully.

"I doubt it." Tru shook her head. _For someone who was not actually dating the woman her brother was showing a remarkably jealous interest in her date the previous evening._ "He's not her type," she added with another hidden smile.

"Why didn't you get the details from her this morning?" she asked curiously. _Better steer the subject away from Cassie's type before she said too much._

"I don't know," Harrison admitted. "I wanted to, but..." 

"You didn't want to sound jealous?" Tru guessed.

Harrison nodded. "It's not like we're actually dating," he pointed out. "Hey wait a minute!" He suddenly stopped walking. "How did you know I saw her this morning?"

"I was there," Tru confessed, realising that in hearing about the tangled mess of her brother's love life she had actually forgotten the reason she was there at all.

"You were at the diner? How did you know she worked there? Did she say anything about her date after I left? Did she mention me?"

"Yes I was at the diner," Tru answered. "No she didn't mention her date, yes she did mention you." She paused unsure how to break the news about how she knew to go there.

"What did she say about me?" Harrison asked.

"You'll have to ask her yourself," Tru replied with a shake of her head. "Do you want to know how I know she worked there?" she asked in a small voice, half hoping he would say no, knowing that he would say yes.

"Sure," Harrison grinned. "How did you figure us out?"

"I didn't," Tru said guiding Harrison over to another bench and sitting down. "You know what today is?"

"Yeah, a rewind day." Harrison shrugged. "So you figured it out yesterday?"

"Not exactly," Tru hesitated. "Cassie asked me for help."

"What sort of help?" Harrison asked before realisation dawned. He paled slightly. "You mean Cassie is the reason you're re-living the day?"

Tru nodded. Harrison leapt up from the bench. "Well come on Tru, what're you sitting here for? We have to go find her. We won't let her out of our sight."

Tru watched her brother hurry down the path and jumped up to follow after him. Any doubts in her mind about how Harrison felt about his fake girlfriend vanished at the look of horror on his face as he realised that it was her life that was at stake that day. 


	7. Convincing Cassie

_**Chapter 7 – Convincing Cassie **_

Tru ran after Harrison who was moving at a rapid pace down the street.

"Harrison hold on," she called. He slowed down a little but didn't stop. She caught up with him and grabbed hold of his arm. "We need to think this through. We need to decide what to tell her."

"The truth," Harrison replied as he hurried on down the street.

"Harrison, don't be ridiculous," Tru called as she ran after him and grabbed hold of his arm to pull him to a stop.

"We can't let her die," Harrison said with a cautious glance around to see if anyone was listening to them.

"Of course not," Tru replied. "I'm not saying we should. But you can't exactly go up to her and say 'my sister is reliving today because you're going to die'. It sounds insane. She won't believe you."

"You don't know that," Harrison argued.

"Yes, I do know that." Tru stopped walking and waited for Harrison to remember the last time she had confided in someone. He turned around and put his arm across her shoulders.

"Just because Luc didn't believe you...it doesn't mean you can't tell anyone else for the rest of your life." Harrison sounded so reasonable when he put it like that. "Besides," he continued. "I believe you."

"You didn't at first," Tru pointed out. "I had to prove it. And even then you took some convincing."

"I would've been convinced sooner if you'd told me more of the results on the horses," Harrison joked. "Do you know any of the results today?"

"No."

"Isn't there anything you know that would convince Cassie?" he asked.

"Nothing," Tru sighed. "I wasn't planning on telling her about me."

"Well we'll just have to try and convince her some other way," Harrison said. "Come on, she'll be finishing her shift in about ten minutes."

They arrived at the diner just as Cassie was leaving. She swung her purse over her shoulder and started walking down the street in the opposite direction. Harrison dashed after her with Tru following in his wake.

"Cassie!" he yelled to make himself heard above the sound of the busy traffic. They were at the opposite side of the intersection and Harrison ducked impatiently between the cars as he continued to yell for the brunette to wait for him.

Tru waited for the lights to change before following after her brother. They had a clear view of the street and there was nowhere Cassie could go out of their sight in the time it took to wait for the lights to change. By the time she had got across the road Harrison had caught up with Cassie and was waiting for her in the alcove of a store.

"What now?" asked Tru. She was still unconvinced about the prospect of telling Cassie she was reliving the day.

"Cassie's place?" Harrison suggested. "It's nearest."

"Okay," Tru agreed.

Cassie frowned. "What's going on?"

"We'll explain when we get inside," Tru said as Harrison steered Cassie over the road to her apartment a couple of blocks away.

Tru looked around the apartment with a critical eye. It was far neater than Harrison's rooms, though most places were. It was sparsely furnished and there were design boards leaning against the walls.

"Coffee?" Cassie asked as she moved towards the counter. She waved a hand towards the sofa and chairs.

"Sure," said Tru as she took a seat in one of the overstuffed chairs. Harrison had already settled down on the sofa and nodded his agreement to a drink.

Cassie brought the drinks over and sat down on the sofa beside Harrison. Tru noticed that unlike other times when they had been together, this time Cassie kept her distance from Harrison.

"So what's going on?" Cassie asked after taking a sip of coffee and placing the mug on the low table in front of her. 

"Erm," Tru hesitated at once. _How do you tell someone you relive days?_

"Cassie," Harrison said, coming to his sister's rescue for the moment. "Do you know anyone who might want to hurt you or someone who might be angry with you?"

"You mean apart from your sister?" Cassie replied with a sharp glance at Tru.

"It's okay," Tru said with a glare of her own at Harrison. "I know what's been going on now."

"He told you?" Cassie asked in amazement before turning her stunned expression on Harrison.

"Not exactly," Tru said. "But is there anyone, besides me, who you might have upset recently?"

"Well I annoy my boss pretty much every day but I don't think I've upset him any more than usual just recently," Cassie considered.

"What about ex-boyfriends?" Tru asked.

"I don't think so," Cassie shrugged. "My ex and I just grew apart, I was leaving town anyway. Where's this going anyway? Why the sudden interest in whether anyone is upset with me?"

"Erm," Tru hesitated again. She shot a pleading look at Harrison to help her out. She just couldn't bring herself to tell someone else her secret.

"Tru sometimes _knows _things," Harrison began. "Unusual things."

"What sort of unusual things?" Cassie interrupted.

"Like things that happen before they do."

Cassie raised an eyebrow and a small smirk appeared on her face. "Is this some sort of a joke?" she asked.

"No," replied Harrison, quickly before he lost his nerve. The stakes were too high to back out now. "Tru _knows_ that someone is going to...to hurt you, today, tonight. So we need to know who it might be."

"If Tru is as all-seeing as all that, why doesn't she tell you who it is?" Cassie asked.

"She doesn't get all the information," Harrison answered weakly. It had seemed such a good idea to tell Cassie the truth but now he understood just how hard a task that was.

"Why not?" Cassie pushed on, still sounding extremely sceptical, not to mention slightly impatient.

"Because..." Harrison looked over to Tru for help.

"It doesn't matter why not," Tru said in a firm tone. "What's important is who would want to kill you."

"_Kill me?"_ Cassie jumped up from her seat, her gaze darting from Tru to Harrison and back again. She began to back away from them, towards the door of the apartment.

"Cassie," Harrison jumped up from his seat and grabbed her by the shoulders. "You have to listen to us."

"I knew you were crazy," Cassie hissed. "But I didn't know you were completely insane. You've had your fun, now get out."

"Cassie," Tru started.

"You too," Cassie said, never taking her eyes off Harrison.

"Please Cassie," Harrison begged. "You have to believe us. You have to help us."

"I don't _have_ to do anything," Cassie replied as she freed herself from Harrison's increasingly strong grip.

"Please," Harrison pleaded again. "Just promise us you'll not leave the apartment today."

"You're mad!" Cassie shouted as she flung open the door for Harrison and Tru to leave.

Tru walked past her and out into the hallway. Harrison paused at the door. "Please promise me," he asked again. "I'll never bother you again, just promise me. Please."

"Just go, Harrison," Cassie said in a tired voice.

He followed after Tru and turned as the door clicked shut behind him.

"Now what?" he asked Tru as he followed her down the stairs.

"Now we wait," she answered.

"She didn't believe us," Harrison muttered as they stepped out onto the sidewalk.

"No," Tru replied.

"I'm sorry I insisted on this."

"It's not like I had any better ideas," Tru consoled. They settled down on a low wall on the other side of the road to wait out the next few hours. Both were lost in similar thoughts of what was the right way to tell someone they cared about something impossible without losing them forever.


	8. At the Riverside

_**Chapter 8 – At the Riverside **_

"Are you sure there aren't any other exits?" Tru asked for the third time.

"No," Harrison answered, not taking his eyes off the door. They had been there for hours but nothing seemed to draw his attention away from the entrance.

"Is that a no, there are no other exits, or a no you aren't sure?" Tru asked.

"There aren't any other exits," Harrison clarified. "She's been hassling the landlord about fire safety since she moved in."

"Hassling him enough for him to..." Tru suggested, knowing that she was clutching at straws.

"I doubt it," Harrison shook his head, his eyes still glued to the entrance.

"You okay?" Tru asked.

Harrison shrugged in response.

"It'll all work out?" she said in the hope of bolstering his spirits enough for him to be of use when the time came that evening.

"Like it did with Luc?" Harrison asked bitterly.

"Cassie isn't Luc," Tru pointed out.

"But neither of them exactly jumped to believe us. And we never actually told Cassie the whole story."

"Let's just get today over with," Tru sighed and turned back to the building. Her mind still on Harrison, she nearly didn't see the smartly dressed man entering the building. She gasped as she recognised him as Cassie's date from the restaurant.

"What is it?" Harrison asked as Tru jumped up from her seat.

"That was Cassie's date from last night," she explained, wondering whether to move over the road or not. They were on the same side of the street as the river at the moment. If the day played out the same as it had yesterday then sooner or later Cassie would end up crossing the road to them. Harrison had no such hesitation however and Tru grabbed his arm to stop him running across the road and into the building.

"It might be a coincidence," Tru cautioned. "Maybe he lives in the building himself."

"He looks too well dressed to live there," Harrison pointed out.

"But you said yourself, Cassie's fairly new in town, she had to meet him somewhere, maybe he does live there, or perhaps he is meeting a mutual friend."

All her arguments died in her throat however when the man came back out of the building with Cassie at his side. They crossed over the road and were heading straight towards Tru and Harrison. Tru took hold of Harrison's arm and pulled him into a nearby alley.

"Can we make this quick?" they heard Cassie ask as they passed by. "I have plans this evening and considering that disaster of a date last night..."

"Last night you made a fool out of me," the man hissed. "There were people I know in that restaurant. Important people."

"Hey wait a minute Matt," Cassie came to a stop just a past the end of the alley. Tru and Harrison waited silently.

"No, you wait," the man, Matt, continued in a vicious voice as he grabbed her arm in a harsh grip. Tru grabbed hold of Harrison in a similar fashion to stop him jumping in. The man was twice his size and she didn't want to be visiting him in hospital again any time soon. Reaching into her pocket she grabbed her cell phone and signalling for Harrison to keep a watch on Cassie, she moved out of earshot to call the police. Directing them to the street corner she told a small white lie in that they were heading to the river, where she of course knew Cassie would end up sooner or later.

Finishing the call she saw that Harrison was frantically waving her over. Rushing back to him she saw the reason for his agitation. Cassie and Matt had started to move away and were indeed heading for the river. Following after them as discreetly as possible neither Tru nor Harrison could hear what was being said. But from the expression on Cassie's face she was not liking the conversation one bit.

Tru had to hold Harrison back every couple of paces to stop him from intervening. "Be careful," she cautioned. "Let the police handle it."

"What if they're too late?" Harrison whispered. "They were yesterday."

"They didn't have me call them yesterday," Tru pointed out.

"I can't just leave it," Harrison said as he tried to wrestle his arm free of his sister's fierce grip. "I know you're scared of losing me since...but you can't keep me safe forever."

"Harrison," Tru pleaded. "Please leave it for the police, they'll be here any minute."

"You don't understand," Harrison argued. "He's taking her to the river, she's scared of the water, I have to stop him."

"She can't swim?" Tru asked.

"No," Harrison replied, quickening his pace to follow Cassie and Matt who were nearing the path leading to the river.

"Damn," she jogged after Harrison just as Cassie and Matt took a turn around the corner and out of sight down the riverside path.

Cassie and Matt had moved off of the main path. The trees obscured Tru's view for a moment. Harrison who was a pace ahead of her raced ahead as the sound of the crack of flesh against flesh rang out in the quiet evening air. "Hey," he called out, drawing as much attention as he could, but there was no one about to hear him.

"This isn't your business," Matt said. "Get on your way."

"Leave her alone," Tru said as she caught up with Harrison. Cassie was on the ground nursing a bruised face. Matt moved towards Harrison when he didn't leave.

"This isn't your concern," Matt said again. "This is between me and the bitch." He swung a meaty fist at Harrison and connected with his stomach. He fell to his knees and Tru sank down beside him. _Where were the police?_

"Hold it there?" Matt called out. Tru looked up and saw that Cassie had backed away from him and was working her way to where she and Harrison were sitting on the ground.

"Run Cassie!" Harrison gasped once his breath had returned. "Get away from the river."

Tru watched Matt move towards Cassie who turned to run, leading Matt away from herself and Harrison, but instead of moving back towards the streets she was heading directly towards the river.

"Damn it," Tru said as she jumped to her feet.

"She doesn't come down here," Harrison said, suddenly remembering. "She hates the river, she'll have got turned around in the trees."

They ran after them. A loud splash sounded and Harrison raced forward, diving into the river from one of the small jetties.


	9. A New Start

_**Chapter 9 – A New Start **_

Matt stood on the bank looking puzzled when Cassie didn't resurface immediately. Tru heard the welcome sound of sirens as she searched the waters for Harrison and Cassie.

She called out for her brother and after what seemed like an eternity she finally spotted his blond hair as he struggled to manoeuvre the dark-haired Cassie towards the small jetty.

Tru helped Harrison get the gasping Cassie out of the water.

Once everyone was back on dry land, Tru turned to where Matt was stood. He heard the police coming down the path at the same moment she did. He turned to run but his exit was blocked by the ambulance that had come down the path from the opposite direction.

Tru felt the familiar rush of relief that once again a death had been diverted. She waved the paramedics over and after they had taken Cassie to the ambulance she waited until they had given her the all clear.

Harrison, already checked over, stood pacing nearby. He had shot frequent looks of livid fury at Matt whilst he waited in the police car. Tru was relieved when they had finally driven him away to the station and out of the way of Harrison's anger.

"Can I go home now?" Tru heard Cassie ask the paramedic. "I only live a minute or two away."

"I think so," the young woman replied. "You're lucky the young man there got to you in time."

"I know," Cassie said as she stood up and thanked the woman for her help.

"Cassie?" Tru asked as Cassie moved towards her. She noticed that she was still slightly shaky, or perhaps it was merely shivers from being in the cold water of the river.

"Tru," Cassie replied as she let her guide her away from the rest of the people who were congregating on the pathway.

"I know you didn't believe us," Tru began. "And I won't bring it up again, but could you try and forget this afternoon and give Harrison a second chance?"

"A second chance?" Cassie asked with a raise of one eyebrow. "Does he want one?"

"Of course he does," answered Tru.

"Really?" Cassie asked with a hint of scepticism. "I thought you said you knew we weren't really dating anyway?"

"I do know that," Tru said. "I also know that he likes you and you like him. So one of you should come right out and tell the other."

Tru turned to walk away. There was nothing else she could do now other than leave the two of them to work things out alone. She only hoped that her instincts today were more on target than they had been the previous day.

Harrison stood waiting until Tru had finished talking with Cassie. He wanted to know what she was saying to her but for some reason his feet felt as though they were frozen to the ground and he couldn't move. He watched Tru wave goodbye as she walked along the path. He knew she was headed in to work and he breathed a sigh of relief that there would be one less body in the morgue that night.

Cassie remained where she stood staring at him with a thoughtful expression on her face. He didn't know if he liked the look but it was a vast improvement on the one she had directed at him when throwing him out of her apartment.

"Harrison, I'm freezing here," she finally called out. "Are you just going to stand there all night?"

Suppressing a small grin he moved towards her and they headed back to her apartment. "So can I come finish that coffee now?" he teased.

"I think that one will have gone cold by now," she quipped back. "I think I can stretch my budget to another coffee, especially for the hero of the hour."

Harrison laughed in response. "So what are you doing tonight?" he asked.

"I'm washing my hair," she grinned.

"Oh," said Harrison, disappointment rising in his chest.

"It's kind of grimy from the river," Cassie continued.

"Tell me about it," Harrison joked in relief as he ran his hand over his own equally grimy head. 

"So, do you realise you don't have an excuse to stop by now?" Cassie said, wondering if she was being too subtle.

"No," Harrison replied, his tongue tied. He had been out of the dating game for a while now and was well out of practice. _Was she asking what he thought she was?_

"So I guess I won't be seeing you much from now on?" Cassie tried again. She was beginning to doubt if Tru knew what she was talking about at all. _Did she have to spell it out for him?_

They reached her building and headed up the stairs to her second floor apartment.

"You don't mind if I clean up here?" Harrison asked.

"Of course not," Cassie replied as she grabbed towels from the linen cupboard and frowned at the trail of muddy water they had already left across the floor.

"Cassie?" Harrison called from where he was making the coffee.

"What is it?" she asked as she moved to grab the mugs they had all left on the table earlier that afternoon. Looking at the half drunk contents she didn't notice Harrison moving around the counter to take the crockery off her until he had grabbed them out of her hands and put them down on the counter.

"Wh-" she began before Harrison captured her lips in a kiss.

"We have some catching up to do," he said with a grin when he finally pulled away.

"And some cleaning up," Cassie laughed pulling a water weed from Harrison's hair with a grin.

"That can wait," Harrison said as he moved closer again.

Cassie ducked out of the way. She had to say it before she changed her mind. "Tru really did know what was going to happen didn't she?"

"Yeah, she knew," Harrison replied.

"Sorry I called you insane," Cassie said with a small shrug.

"That's okay," Harrison grinned. "I took some convincing before I believed her stories too. So you definitely believe us?"

"Yes," she replied. She had no idea how Tru had known but there was no other explanation for the day's events. "So no more secrets or lies right?"

"Deal," agreed Harrison. "So does this mean we're now _officially_ dating?"

"You tell me," Cassie grinned as she put her arms round his neck.

"In that case, _definitely_," Harrison laughed. "How else am I going to get my free breakfasts?"

* * *

_Author Note: That is it for my first Tru Calling fic. I was going to have Cassie scared by Tru's abilities and leave town but decided instead to finish it off in this way. I like Harrison too much to crush him completely by having another woman leave the city, and him, behind. Hopefully it is not overly sappy._


End file.
